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Tonight there’s a little bit of changeup in the normal So You Think You Can Dance routine. Tonight we’re voting on individual dancers instead of pairs. It seems more similar to the way the whole season went last year. Some have suggested that the changeup was due to the fact that the first half of the season didn’t go as swimmingly, but I think it was more or less necessity with only ten dancers left. It’s hard to put three couples out of five in the bottom three. Tonight we will see the couple picked randomly out of a hat instead of the pairs they have been dancing with since the season started. Each couple will dance two paired dances, and each dancer will dance one solo as well.

Tonight our judges are the ever-present Nigel Lythgoe, hip hop choreographers Cicely and Delisa, and Jean Marc Genereaux. Nigel says that tonight we will see the best five girls and the best five guys. He adds they almost had a professional week this week since they each had two routines to do.”Whoopee.” In the real world, they need to impress people enough to pick up the telephone and vote for them tonight. Who peed in the Brit’s corn flakes?

First up is Ivan who picked Martha from the hat. While Martha whose style is contemporary was really hoping for that, instead they pick Ivan’s style of hip hop from the hat. Martha doesn’t think choreographer Shane Sparks likes her very much, but on the other hand her new partner Ivan has been looking forward throughout his time on the show to working with Shane. Ivan is nervous about being partnered with Martha, too, as he is so used to Allison. He also says he can barely handle do one or two routines a week, but three? For her part, Martha says it’s a reality check for everyone, as this week they’ll find out who’s using each other for a crutch and who’s not.

Martha and Ivan do their hip hop routine to Me and You by Cassie. Watching the routine, it’s kind of cool, as everything even remotely connected to Shane Sparks just naturally is. Nigel says Shane did it again with a humor vs. slyness choreography. He tells Ivan that they could tell he was in his own genre as he danced it very well, but from Martha he would like more. Nigel believes she let him outdance her, and when she allows him to do that, it doesn’t let her shine. Delisa tells Martha she thinks she is a great dancer, but she is staying level. She wants her to stand out. Cicely calls her a great dancer as well, and adds they just need to see it come out. Jean Marc’s take is that the chemistry wasn’t established, yet he admits it’s difficult in that short amount time, comparing it to a marathon. Ivan, he felt, was in his element, but from Martha he was looking for more. For me, this is how the hip hop numbers always go, especially when it’s the genre of one from the couple.

The first soloist of the night will be Donyelle, who since she and Benji always did so phenomenally every week keeping them out of the bottom three, has never danced a solo on the show. She danced a hip hop routine to Git It by Bub B featuring Yin Yang Twins. She looks great alone, but I admit I miss Benji. Nigel feels this reminded him that Donyelle’s specialty is hip hop and that’s important, because it makes every other dance that wasn’t her genre that much better. Ciciely says she doesn’t have any junk in her trunk to pull that off, and tries a little booty dancing with Nigel, prompting him to ask why they’re always next to him doing that. Cicely gets back to the topic and says that’s why Donyelle is number one, because she can do all of it. Delisa thinks she saw Nigel breaking out in a heat rash watching it. Jean Marc notes that Donyelle is always there on the dance floor busting her feet, her body, and everything else. He calls her hot.

Dmitry is up with his own solo, something we’ve seen often as many times as he and whatever female he was paired with at the time appeared in the bottom three. He dances to Pump Itby The Black Eyed Peas. The Latin dancer that he is, Dmitry totally owns this, and in the end rips his shirt off. Amidst the screams in the audience, Nigel, tongue-in-cheek, says he really doesn’t think any ladies are going to pick up the phone and vote for that. Speak for yourself. Yowza. Cicely says she felt like she was watching Michael Jackson, and tells him he did great. Delisa tells Dmitry it’s his element, and he can never go wrong with that. Jean Marc thinks Dmitry needs to grow from everywhere, and he has so far. He has so much more versatility in his body today than he did on day one. As he gets done with his critique, Nigel is pretending to unbutton his shirt to go with Dmitry’s look. Somehow, I don’t think it would be the same.

Now this one is going to be an interesting couple. Travis picks Heidi from that hat, and they will be doing the paso doble, choreographed by Mary Murphy. Mary wants Travis to look more masculine, and that’s not the first time he’s been told that in this competition. Heidi seems to be the more intense one, and she’s supposed to be the cape in this equation, not the matador. The spins alone here are promising, as both of these two dancers are known for their great spins.

Dancing to the Plaza of Execution from the Mask of Zoro Soundtrack, I can only say “Wow” watching Travis and Heidi. They have an awesome intensity together. Nigel says it’s the most dramatic opening ever seen on the show. To think that Mary could do choreograph that, then sit and giggle so much. He tells Heidi and Travis their technique was fantastic, and their chemistry dramatic and intense, but he’s not sure it will count because he thinks the name of the show has changed to “So You Think You Can Open Your Shirt.” Cicely says she was actually seeing a bull and cape and they made her believe it. Delisa says the intensity was definitely there, and that it was great. Jean Marc calls it passionate, and says it’s their week this week. He tells them they rock and are wonderful.